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the haunted house of horrors

In the late 1970's a family of 3 (husband, wife, and a child) moved into the Mahachai community in Samut Sakhon province. They were outsiders, half Chinese-Thai, and ran a business of some sort. Their business did well, so they built this brand new house which was one of the nicest in town. The house was built in what is now a fairly populated area, but at that time was in the countryside with no other residences nearby; it was isolated. The success and wealth of the family drew attention, and this brought about the horrific events.

One night, a small group of thieves saw an opportunity to steal some cash and/or property and broke into the house. There were no neighbors around and no busy roads, so they knew that there would be little risk of drawing attention. No one knows the exact turn of events, but what is known is that the intruders horrifically murdered the entire family and took whatever cash and valuables they could. They escaped into the night and as far as anyone knows, were never caught, nor were their identities ever determined. The house now sits mostly uninhabited, and has had several fires set by drug users who have used it as a sort of den. The structure itself is very unsafe.

I had been told that there was a glass-domed skylight on the roof of this house, which I thought could make for some nice lighting. The glass domes such as the one on this house were once a trend in new homes amongst the affluent in Thailand. The lighting that came through it at the time of day that we were there was okay, but the skylight itself made for a better subject. It has a hole in the middle which I think is symbolic of the broken dreams and shattered lives of the original owners of the house. The dome has always been the metaphorical center-piece of the house, when it was once prosperous and gleaming, and now, decades later when it sits in broken, charred ruins.

I spoke with some locals who had been told of the events by their parents & grandparents, and they all agreed that the house was seen by Mahachai residents as being host to angry spirits. It now hosts a small ice distribution business. The renter said that she had been told by neighbors that terrible things had happened there, however the owner of the house denied any such claims.